<b>And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of speaking with him (Exod. 31:18).</b> R. Simeon the son of Lakish said: This may be compared to a man whose teacher is instructing him in the law. While the student is still learning, the master recites the law and the student repeats it after him, but when the student has learned the law, the teacher says to him: “Let us say it together.” Similarly, after He had taught Moses the law, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Come, let us say it together, you and I, as it is said: <i>When He had made an end of speaking with him</i>.
Another explanation of “made an end” (<i>kekhaloto</i>). It is written as <i>kekhalotah</i> (“like a bride”). R. Simeon the son of Lakish said: A scholar is forbidden to teach the law in a community unless the words of the Torah are as pleasing to those who hear them as a bride is pleased with her spouse and as he is eager to listen to her words. R. Levi said in the name of R. Simeon the son of Lakish: Just as a bride is adorned with twenty-four kinds of ornaments,<sup class="footnote-marker">22</sup><i class="footnote">So that she might be properly dressed for the wedding ceremony.</i> so a scholar must be well versed in the twenty-four books of the Torah. Another comment on <i>like a bride</i>. When a bride secludes herself in her father’s house and does not appear in public until she is about to enter the bridal chamber, she indicates thereby: “Let anyone who knows anything against me come and testify,” so too a scholar must be retiring and well known for his good deeds.
<i>And He gave unto Moses when He made an end</i>, etc. R. Abahu said: During the forty days Moses remained on the mountain, he would study the law and then forget it. Finally, he said: Forty days have passed and I still know nothing. What did the Holy One, blessed be he do? After the fortieth day, He gave him the Torah as a gift, as it is said: <i>And He gave unto Moses when He made an end of speaking</i>. Could Moses have possibly learned the entire Torah in forty days, since it is written: <i>The measure thereof is longer than the earth</i> (Job 11:9)? No. It was only the basic principles (<i>kelalim</i>)<sup class="footnote-marker">23</sup><i class="footnote">A play on the words <i>kelalim</i> (basic things) and <i>kekhalto</i> (made an end of).</i> that the Holy One, blessed be He, taught Moses, as it is stated: <i>When he made an end of speaking</i>.
The two tablets correspond to heaven and earth, to the bride and groom, to the two best men (at a wedding), and to the two worlds. R. Hanina said that the word <i>luhot</i> (“tablets”) is written because there were of equal size. <i>Tablets of stone</i>. Why were they of stone? Because most of the punishments decreed in the Torah are administered through stoning.
<i>And the tablets were the work of God</i> (Exod. 32:16). R. Joshua the son of Levi declared: Every day a heavenly voice reverberates from Mount Horeb exclaiming: “Woe unto you creatures for neglecting (lit. insulting) the Torah,” for whosoever is not constant in his study of the Torah is rebuked by the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said: <i>And the tablets were the work of God</i>. It is like a man who asks his friend: “What is this made of?” And he replies: “The very best silver.” So it is with regard to the work of the King of Kings; be engaged in the study of the Torah.
<i>Graven upon the tablets</i> (ibid.). What is meant by <i>harut</i> (“graven”)? R. Judah, R. Nehemiah, and the sages discussed it. R. Judah said it means freedom (<i>herut</i>)<sup class="footnote-marker">24</sup><i class="footnote">A play on the words <i>harut</i> (graven) and <i>herut</i> (freedom).</i> from domination by foreign kingdoms. R. Nehemiah was of the opinion that it means freedom from the angel of death. While the sages contended that it means freedom from suffering. R. Eliezer the son of R. Yosé the Galilean stated: If the angel of death should come to the Holy One, blessed be He, and say: “You created me for naught in this world,” the Holy One, blessed be he would answer him: I have given you dominion over all the nations of the world except this one, to which I have granted freedom (<i>herut</i>) because of the tablets. How do we know that this is so? Because it is written: <i>I said: Ye are godlike beings, and all of you sons of the Most High, but since you have behaved evilly you shall die like men</i> (Ps. 82:6–7).